We’re talking 2008 / 2009.
During these years, the Hardstyle sound changed bigtime with the introduction of the pitched kickdrums.
Donkey Rollers, Headhunterz and Noisecontrollers, amongst others, launced their innovative sound and others soon followed.
Still so round.. Even though many tracks already became harder, I still produced a lot of round tracks back then.
Round as in ‘friendly’ basslines and not so much distortion. When I think back and listen to No Regrets, I notice this track can definitely be categorized as “not so hard”. But it did fit the genre. Back then I started evolving myself as a producer by recording more and more original vocals. So no browsing the Internet for samples. Just let the music and lyrics come from within. However, this was a total new approach for me. Back then I was still working as an Internet professional for a few days a week. But it became too much to handle at the same time, as I couldn’t focus on either the music or my profession. So I went on a personal journey and decided to completely dedicate the coming years of my life to music. During this journey, I produced “No Regrets”. Melodic & Meaningful
The Lyrics The lyrics in No Regrets reflect my feelings and the decision I had to take about my future.
“The most beautiful dream, is the dream of a promising tomorrow. Live your dream… It‘s time to look forward. No Regrets.
Follow that dream..without regrets”
Later on I realized to how much people these lyrics actually apply. We all have to make descisions in life that are hard to make. A lot of fans of the track, told this to me in the clubs when I met them.
The Production To get back on the introduction of the story. I had just perfected the “A-lusion / Drummer Beat” kick years before and now the sound radically changed. However, I liked the new sound so I started experimenting and adapting with some of my tracks, like many other producers. No Regrets, was released together with Visual Perception, Too Close and Blue Fairy. An EP that most people know, because of my performance on Qlimax 2009. If the kicks in this track would have been harder or more ‘hardstyle’, the track would probably have been more known. But then again, would they still fit the lyrics and vibe?
I didn’t know any good vocalists just yet, so I decided to use text-to-speech for it. I was surprised to hear how much those computer voices improved over the years.
I used RP Predator for the main pluck lead, combined with the Virus Ti saw lead.
The screeches are made with the VirusTi, but loaded into Kontakt. This way I could make the screech a bit more interesting by adding additional distortion and stretching the sample.
Remixes Although the original track, never got officially remixed, I saw a lot of remakes on youtube by talented producers. This is amazing to see. The purest compliment a track can get!
Anyway, maybe it’s time for a 2015 remix? Let me know if you would like that.
While writing this story, I was listening to the track on the Scantraxx YouTube channel.
I just read this comment by a listener:
“plan something big for ur life, while listening to this and be motivated” 🙂
Now that sounds like a plan!
